The TIGER Capacity Building Facility (TCBF), launched in September 2006, was based on a long-term vision about developing human, technical and institutional capacity in Africa.

In the first phase (18-months), a plan was carried out with the following objectives:

• Support at least 15 TIGER research projects with tailored capacity building activities to achieve their objectives, while developing their human, technical and institutional capacity to use EO technology within the water management process.
• Contribute to develop sustainable information services and systems to improve Integrated Water Management (IWRM) (at regional, national and local scales) by using space-based technology to overcome the water information gap in African countries.
• Support the consolidation of a critical mass of technical centres, water authorities and universities in Africa with the skills and capabilities to derive, disseminate and use space-based water relevant information for IWRM.
• Contribute to improve water research results in Africa by exploiting the advantages of EO technology.

The International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation, ITC (www.itc.nl) implemented the first phase of the TCBF.